Renato Moicano tells the story of how he got his name ‘Moicano’:
“I used to use the mohawk and Moicano means mohawk so when I started to train in Brazilian Jiu Jitsu, they used to give nicknames to everybody, and then they started to call me Moicano because of the hair”… pic.twitter.com/HuVXJ9KEHD
— Home of Fight (@Home_of_Fight) September 23, 2024
Renato Carneiro recently revealed how he got his nickname.
Carneiro says “Moicano” is not his real name, although that is a popular misconception in the mixed martial arts world. According to the Brazilian, “Moicano” translates to mohawk, the hairstyle he was sporting when he started training in Brazilian jiu-jitsu as a kid. Since it was tradition to give everyone nicknames in BJJ, Carneiro got “Moicano” based on his hairdo. And it has stuck with him to the point where his father also refers to him by the same moniker.
“Everybody thinks [it’s my real name]. But this is my nickname,” Carneiro recently told Home of Fight. “I used to use the mohawk: ‘Moicano’ means mohawk. So when I started to train in Brazilian jiu-jitsu, they used to give nicknames to everybody. And then they started to call me ‘Moicano’ because of the hair. But I was like 10 or 11, so since then people just call me ‘Moicano.’ Even my father.”
When asked what happened to the mohawk, the 35-year-old admitted: “I’m getting too bald, brother.”
Moicano is slated to face Frenchman Benoit St. Denis in the main event at UFC Fight Night 243 on Saturday at the Accor Arena in Paris. “Moicano” made Jalin Turner pay severely for a walk-off KO attempt in his most recent outing at UFC 300 this past April. Turner attempted to walk off without the fight being stopped, after dropping Carneiro early on. The Brazilian made it to the next round and came from behind to score a technical knockout, extending his winning streak to three.
Meanwhile, St. Denis mounted a five-fight finishing streak after a foiled UFC debut against Elizeu Zaleski dos Santos in 2021. “God of War” then had his hype train derailed by a knockout loss against Dustin Poirier at UFC 299 this past March.
